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The historic women's volleyball match between Nebraska and Missouri at Wrigley Field had to be suspended on Sunday.
The fixture was twice delayed before being suspended after weather wreaked havoc with the court conditions.
Despite temperatures only being in the 70s, it had been humid in Chicago throughout the day leading to excessive moisture on the court and creating slippery conditions.
The first set was stopped for more than 15 minutes after just three points while players from both teams dried the TaraFlex floor with towels. They also tore the logos off the court at the iconic MLB ballpark to prevent slipping.
Staff brought battery-powered blowers to the court but conditions continued to worsen throughout the first set before play was eventually stopped at 11-7 in favor of Nebraska.
An impromptu dance battle broke out between the two teams, keeping the sold-out crowd of 43,067 entertained.
The volleyball match between Nebraska and Missouri at Wrigley Field had to be suspended
The match had to be paused twice as players and staff mopped up moisture on the court
Staff brought battery-powered blowers to the court but the conditions remained too slippery
But a 15 minute break was eventually called with teams heading back into their locker rooms before a suspension was finally announced.
'Due to weather conditions affecting the court surface, Sunday's volleyball match between Nebraska and Missouri has been suspended,' a Big Ten statement read.
'Despite best efforts and in collaboration with all parties, rescheduling at Wrigley Field is not possible. A decision on match continuation at the point of suspension will be announced at a later date.'
The match, part of the Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge which was televised on Fox, cannot be rescheduled at Wrigley Field. The schools will make a decision at a later date on whether the match can be made up elsewhere.
'It was on its way to being a very, very epic moment for our sport. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate,' Nebraska coach Dani Busboom Kelly said, via USA Today.
'You don't want to see any injury and put any athlete at a risk for injury,' she added. 'So I think we just kept looking at each other every time somebody would slip and it's like, 'This probably is not going to work.''
Busboom Kelly said that her players expressed concerns about jumping on the temporary court, which had been constructed on a platform over the baseball field.
'They're bummed because of the fans,' Busboom Kelly said. 'I think we all have a soft spot for anybody who paid money to travel here, pay for the tickets, probably bought gear, bought concession stands. I mean, that's a lot of investment for a lot of people. So you want to put on a show for them and do your best and we take a lot of pride in doing that. And I know Missouri, same thing, was very excited to be able to do that.
'But when we called, I think they were relieved that there's no more risk of getting injured.'
No. 3 Kentucky had beaten Penn State earlier in the day, seemingly escaping the majority of the humidity despite some players raising the issue of slipping.
It marked the first volleyball match to be played at Wrigley Field, the historic home of the Chicago Cubs.
